LS polls in Maharashtra: Low vote transfer from NCP led to BJP’s poor performance, says Fadnavis

Speaking at the India Today conclave in Mumbai on Thursday, Fadnavis said, “It is true that BJP’s core voters disapproved of the alliance with NCP as we have been traditional rivals. But now, we have succeeded in convincing our stand to 80 per cent.” He also said that the party has been able to impress upon RSS about the purpose behind such alliance.

“While vote transfer did not happen from allies, the BJP, being a well-established party with a strong cadre, was able to transfer its votes to allies,” Fadnavis said.

Attributing the low vote transfer to NCP’s “settling phase”,  the Deputy CM said, “For the Shiv Sena, it was easier to transfer its votes to the BJP because of their long years of association as poll partners. However, as the BJP  always contested against the NCP, transfer of votes from NCP to BJP was difficult. I would term it a settling period for NCPs voters.”

Ruling out course correction on alliance ahead of the assembly polls, Fadnavis said, “There is no time for any course correction. We have to move forward with the present course. We have recovered grounds to great extent.”

When contacted, senior NCP leaders declined to comment on the remarks.

Explaining that time and circumstance are of essence in politics and that often leads parties to strike decisions, Fadnavis said BJP’s alliance with NCP was driven by circumstances.

The BJP, which was the largest party with the highest vote share, had its seat reduced to nine from 23 in the previous polls. With Shiv Sena winning seven seats and NCP one, the Mahayuti won a total of 17 out of 48 seats.

“If we compare with previous Parliament elections, BJP’s performance was the worst. Out of the total 28 seats contested, we won just nine. There were 12 seats where we lost by a margin of less than three per cent that ranges between 3,000 and 6,000 votes,” he said.

On seat-sharing among the three alliance partners, the BJP leader said that discussion for 288 seats is almost 80 per cent complete and the remaining 20 per cent will conclude soon. “Our approach to seat-sharing will weigh on politics of practicality. Winnability criteria will be main factor. We believe we should not get carried away by perception of how many seats one should contest,” he said.